[EN]KYRGYZ FALCONERS

In a quest for the last nomads and ethnic groups from Persia and Central Asia, I left for 16 months with my van from France to Afghanistan. During a winter in Kyrgyzstan, he followed falconers that perpetuate an ancestral hunting of wolf and fox.

A WINTER IN BISHKEK

I begin the ninth month of the journey by entering Kyrgyzstan. I cross the border a few days after Charlie Hebdo's attacks and the customs officers, noticing that I am French, talk to me about it in an embarrassed way. As if they wanted to make me understand that Muslims in their country have nothing to do with this story. It seems obvious to me, but they care. Winter is getting harder and harder. Under-equipped, I hit the road that leads me to the capital without tire chains. I expect to have an accident at all times despite my prudent driving. And fatally, it's on an ice-cold road between two passes that my vehicle makes a head-to-tail and comes to crash into a wall of snow. It's too much for me. I decide to stop in Bishkek and wait for the weather to come back. My van stays for three months under centimetres of powder in a Stalinist city. I take advantage of this opportunity to take my time and organize the two reports that I always planned to do in this country: eagle hunters and Kyrgyz nomads; the latter do not start their transhumance until spring. While I am inquiring from an old acquaintance, Goulzina, a young Kyrgyz girl I met four years ago, here in Bishkek and who has been a guide ever since, I realize that Aibek, the person in charge of the apartment where I rent a room, is also very familiar with the subject. This will greatly simplify my searches.

THE EAGLE HUNT

In all of Kyrgyzstan, eagle hunting remains in only three villages. Following its ban during the Soviet period, those who owned eagles had to hide or abandon them. That tradition almost disappeared. But some families, where men were falconers from father to son, tried to reconnect with this ancestral form of hunting. Barely 200 kilometres from the capital, Bonkonbayev is not only the nearest village, but above all it is the one with the highest number of falconers. It's a good thing, because the harsh climate makes it very difficult to move around. The temperature is now -27 degrees Celsius. Working conditions are difficult. With my friend Greg, who joined me for the video part of the project, we realize that following a hunt is a real challenge.

THE PICTURE

We've been meeting the hunters of the village for several days now. They tell us their stories and their motivations to perpetuate traditions. Some of them have done a job. Others are more attracted by the sporting and cultural dimensions. Tired and frustrated to show their birds of prey only catching stuffed lures in the backyard of their home, hunters are now eager to take us on a "real" hunt. The next morning at eight o' clock, our horses are ready. On the heights of Bokonbayev, with discretion and at the right distance, I photograph the slightest movements of the hunters in a surrealist setting. We now face the violent reality of wolf and fox hunting... For five hours, I do what I can to frame the hunters' actions. Sometimes on horseback, often on foot, I get exhausted very quickly. At the end of the day, the light is soft when they decide to return to the village. The oldest one is always leading the way. My 24 mm allows me to have a nice wide plan with a cemetery in the background. The eagles are still very agitated, but I know that at 1/5000s, I won't risk any blur when they spread their wings. The good compromise between the Iso that I don't increase to keep the image very sharp and the aperture at f/4.5, allows me to optimize my image and make it as pictorial as possible.

Text and photo published in the magazine Le Monde De La Photo #89 in September 2016

Extract from the book Ashayer - nomads in Persian - available in bookshop and on